Good sport

Nick Harding puts a Mercedes-based two-berth through its paces

The Mercedes-Benz-based Coachman Sportivo 565 is nearly 7.5m long, yet its chassis is rated at a driving licence-friendly 3,500kg. It’s built in Sweden by Coachman’s parent company, Kabe, but it comes with a Brit-friendly specification – and a price tag that reflects its premium nature. The model tested here is a 2025 version. Key changes for future 565s will see a switch to a lounge featuring inward-facing seating and a free-standing table, rather than the forward-facing double travel seat and rather clever fold-away table (with large swing-out extension).

Build quality – 92%

How do they do it? This vehicle feels like it’s built from bricks… yet it boasts more than 450kg of payload. It’s also on an Al-Ko chassis, which helps keep the centre of gravity low and offers supple ride characteristics. The coachbuilt body has aluminium outer and inner walls as well as high-quality insulation, complemented by an Alde central heating system that provides underfloor warmth throughout, thanks to a network of piping.

The garage is a generous size, accessible from either side via angled doors with triple locking points. Lashing points are on rails, while heating outlets and lights are on either side.

Key exterior fittings include a 150W solar panel, steps at the cab doors and a one-piece habitation door on the UK nearside.

The feel of superior quality continues on the inside, where there’s a particularly solid feel to the furniture and fittings. At the same time there are tactile, soft fabric finishes to the walls and ceiling, as well as neat touches like linings to the cubby holes over the cab.

The only added option on this test model is an electrically-operated awning – it adds £1,950 to the £117,075 starting price and takes 25kg of the payload. Other factory-fitted extra options include: Smart-D remote access (£550); Dometic Freshjet air conditioning (£2,250) and an Al-Ko HY4 self-levelling system (£7,400).

Driving – 86%

Cab features MBUX infotainment system

Some motorhomes simply feel ‘right’ on the road, and this is one of them. As standard you get the pretty awesome combination of 168bhp and a nine-speed automatic transmission. The superior build quality results in a less ‘rattly’ drive than you get in some coachbuilts.

The cab has Mercedes’ MBUX infotainment system with a large touchscreen featuring Bluetooth connectivity, DAB radio, satellite navigation and a very clear rear-view monitor. The seats offer an excellent range of adjustment.

In terms of fuel consumption, I would estimate that careful owners can expect 30mpg, especially on the kind of long-distance hauls a vehicle like this will cherish.

Daytime – 75%

Future 565s will have inward-facing seating

Step down from the cab into the main living quarters and you’ll find a standard floorplan – fixed single beds are set high at the back to optimise the capacity of the garage below, the kitchen and washroom are mid-’van and the lounge is at the front.

The near full-width sunroof lets lots of daylight into the lounge area, while at night all the lighting is dimmable via a rather sophisticated control over the habitation door (an app is also available, at extra cost). All the blinds are standard cassette units with flyscreens (habitation door excepted, which has a concertina blind).

The locker over the nearside inward-facing single seat hosts a slide-down bracket for a flatscreen TV. There are also sockets for a TV at the end of the nearside bed.

Night-time – 75%

Generously sized single beds

Two steps up take you to the permanent single beds, and they’re a generous enough 1.96m (6ft 3in) x 0.78m (2ft 5in) with superior quality one-piece mattresses on slatted bases. Hinged upper sections enable you to sit up and read, etc.

There’s a solid section between the beds at the head end but Coachman doesn’t supply a filler cushion for here. Open shelving with elasticated retainers is on the back wall, while the console here includes a mains socket and two USB portals as well as a main light switch.

Throughout, all lighting is dimmable. The individually switched reading lights have USB-C connections. Lockers across the back wall mean you can’t really sit fully upright in bed, but the two rooflights and a large ceiling light help maintain a feeling of space in the sleeping zone.

Kitchen – 67%

L-shaped kitchen

A little surprisingly you only get a two-burner hob and a separate combined oven and grill for cooking – the latter set rather low. The kitchen arrangement is L-shaped, with the only permanent worktop between the hob and the square, stainless steel sink (which has a loose cover that fits flush to the worktop).

Storage is perhaps the biggest issue. Yes, there are plenty of drawers (full marks for the central locking functions) and lockers but, apart from the fridge, the upper lockers are the only places in which you can store taller items such as bottles and cereal boxes.

Other kitchen fittings include a splash panel, extractor fan, black mixer tap and single mains socket. Immediately to the right, the Thetford fridge/freezer with automatic energy selection has a more than generous 142-litre capacity.

Washroom – 72%

washroom Circular inset handbasin

The underfloor heating continues in the washroom, where you’ll find a swivel-bowl Thetford toilet, folding doors for creating a shower area and a circular inset handbasin.

The shower area has just the one plug hole, but it’s complemented by a pump that draws out all the excess water. There’s a considerable ledge over the wheel arch area. In keeping with current trends, the showerhead and riser bar, basin mixer tap and towel holder are all in black.

You also get two downlighters, two mirror-doored lockers over the basin and one to its side. It does lack an opening window but there is a small, neatly housed rooflight.

Details – 83%

Details of note include: a Maxview omnidirectional TV aerial; a removable fabric pocket that sticks to the wall in the bedroom; two lots of double coat hooks; and a wireless phone charger. The fresh and waste water tanks are on the small side, at 87 and 90 litres respectively.